6 Best Pig Weighing Stations For Homesteaders On a Homestead Budget

You think your feeder pig is putting on good weight, but how do you really know? Guessing can lead to overfeeding, underfeeding, or missing your target butcher date. A reliable scale is one of the most underrated tools for raising pigs efficiently on a small homestead.

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Why Accurate Pig Weights Matter on the Homestead

Knowing your pig’s weight is about more than just curiosity; it’s about managing your biggest expense: feed. Feed conversion ratio—the amount of feed it takes to produce one pound of gain—is the single most important metric for raising pigs on a budget. Without an accurate weight, you’re just throwing expensive grain in a trough and hoping for the best.

Accurate, regular weigh-ins are also a critical health indicator. A pig that suddenly stops gaining or loses weight is often the first sign of illness or parasite load, long before other symptoms appear. Catching this early can be the difference between a simple intervention and a costly, heartbreaking loss.

Finally, knowing the live weight is essential for planning. It allows you to accurately estimate the hanging weight and final yield of pork, which is crucial for managing your freezer space or fulfilling orders if you sell shares. It professionalizes your small operation, removing the guesswork and ensuring you and your customers know exactly what to expect.

VEVOR 440lb Platform Scale for Growing Pigs

For homesteaders raising a couple of feeder pigs each year, a basic platform scale is often the perfect entry point. The VEVOR 440lb model is a popular choice because it hits the sweet spot of affordability and functionality. Its capacity is more than enough for most heritage breeds at a typical finishing weight of 250-300 pounds.

The key features are practical for a farm environment. The stainless steel top cleans up easily with a quick spray-down, a non-negotiable feature when dealing with pigs. Most importantly, the digital readout is on a cord, allowing you to mount it on a wall or post, safely away from a curious, destructive snout.

This isn’t a complete, walk-in weighing station, and that’s the main tradeoff. You will need to build a simple, small pen or chute around the platform to encourage the pig to stand still on it. But for the price, you get the most crucial component, and the rest can be built from scrap lumber in an afternoon.

Mophorn 660lb Vet Scale: A Versatile Option

If your homestead includes more than just pigs, or you plan to raise larger breeds like Large Blacks or Gloustershire Old Spots, stepping up to a vet scale is a smart move. The Mophorn 660lb scale provides a higher capacity and, more importantly, a larger platform. That extra space makes a huge difference in convincing a nervous 200-pound animal to step on board.

These scales are designed specifically for animals. They often feature a textured, non-slip rubber mat, which provides much better footing than smooth steel and can help keep a pig calm. This single feature reduces the stress of the weighing process for both you and the animal.

The real value here is versatility. A scale like this can be used for your goats, sheep, or even a livestock guardian dog. By serving multiple purposes, the slightly higher cost is spread across your entire homestead, making it a very efficient investment in your farm’s infrastructure.

Happybuy Hanging Scale for Piglets & Feeders

A platform scale is useless for a 5-pound piglet. For homesteaders who farrow their own litters, a simple hanging scale is an absolutely essential tool. It allows you to track growth rates from the first few days of life, which is the best indicator of a sow’s milking ability and a piglet’s overall health.

The process is simple: you place the piglet in a sling or even a durable cloth shopping bag, hook it to the scale, and lift for a few seconds. This gives you precise, critical data. A piglet that isn’t gaining weight needs immediate attention, and this scale is your early warning system.

This tool is also perfect for portioning feed. Instead of using imprecise scoops, you can weigh out exact rations in a bucket, ensuring every animal gets what it needs and not a kernel of expensive grain is wasted. For its low cost, a hanging scale provides an incredible amount of management data.

The DIY Load Cell Scale: A Budget-Friendly Build

If you’re handy and on a tight budget, you can build a highly effective platform scale for a fraction of the cost of a commercial one. The core of this project is a set of four load cells, which are small sensors that measure force. You can buy a kit online that includes the cells, a junction box, and a digital display for a surprisingly low price.

The build involves mounting the four load cells to the corners of a rigid, level frame made of wood or steel. You then place a sturdy plywood platform on top, ensuring it only makes contact with the load cells. After some simple wiring to the junction box and display, you have a custom-sized scale.

The advantages are clear: unbeatable cost and the ability to build a platform perfectly sized for your space and your animals. The downside is the time and effort required for building and calibration. It also may not be as weatherproof as a commercial model unless you take care to protect the electronic components.

Brecknell PS1000: A Durable, Portable Choice

For the serious homesteader who raises pigs year after year, investing in a more durable, purpose-built scale like the Brecknell PS1000 makes a lot of sense. This is a step up in both price and quality. With a 1,000-pound capacity, it can handle the largest boar or sow on your property with ease.

What you’re paying for here is ruggedness and convenience. These scales are built for the hard knocks of farm life, with a sturdy steel frame and a design that can withstand being jostled around. Many models, including the PS1000, come with integrated wheels and a handle, making them easy to move from the barn to the pasture as needed.

This is not the cheapest option, but it is an investment in efficiency. A reliable, easy-to-move scale saves immense time and frustration over the long run. If pigs are a central part of your homesteading plan, this is a tool that will last for a decade or more, paying for itself in reliable service.

Prime Scales PS-AS700 for Calm Animals

One of the biggest challenges of weighing livestock is that they rarely stand perfectly still. The Prime Scales PS-AS700 and similar models solve this problem with a simple but brilliant feature: an animal weighing or "hold" function.

When activated, this mode doesn’t just show the instantaneous weight. Instead, it rapidly takes a series of readings over a few seconds and calculates a stable average. This effectively filters out the small movements from the pig shifting its weight or wiggling, giving you a locked-in, accurate number on the display.

This feature is a game-changer for reducing stress and getting the job done quickly. You don’t have to wait for that perfect, fleeting moment when the animal is motionless. For homesteaders with a good chute system and relatively calm animals, this function makes the weighing process incredibly smooth and efficient.

Choosing the Right Scale for Your Homestead Herd

There is no single "best" scale; there is only the right scale for your specific needs, goals, and budget. The first step is to assess your operation. Are you raising two feeders for the freezer, or are you farrowing multiple litters a year? The scale of your operation dictates the scale you need.

Use this simple framework to guide your decision:

• Two pigs a year for your freezer? The VEVOR platform scale or a DIY load cell build offers the best value.
• Raising pigs plus goats or sheep? A versatile Mophorn vet scale with a larger, non-slip platform is a wise investment.
• Breeding your own pigs? You absolutely need a Happybuy hanging scale for piglets in addition to a larger scale.
• Pigs are a core part of your farm? The durability of the Brecknell PS1000 or the smart features of the Prime Scales PS-AS700 will pay for themselves in time saved and reliability.

Remember, a scale is a management tool that provides crucial data. It helps you convert feed into pork more efficiently, monitor animal health proactively, and plan your harvest with precision. Choosing the right one for your homestead isn’t an expense—it’s an investment in success.

Ultimately, a pig scale transforms you from a pig keeper into a pig manager, turning guesswork into data and feed bills into predictable, high-quality pork for your family’s table.